The Train Collectors Society

 ‘Any make, Any gauge, Any age’

The Journal of the Society is the TCS News, published quarterly, and sent to all members. From time to time we will include the odd extract from the magazine on the site to let non-member know what they might be missing!  

Remembrance of Things Past, Part Two –

S-scale Trains Made in Weimar

By Dirk Hertel TCS 694

My article “Remembrance of Things Past – O-gauge Trains Made in East(ern) Germany ” [1 ] briefly mentioned VEB Metallspielwaren Weimar as the third East German manufacturer of larger-than-HO trains. Although I remember their S-gauge clockwork train sets being sold widely in East German toy and model train shops from the 1960s to the end of the 1980s, I never saw any of their early O-gauge trains. My interest was rekindled in summer 2004 when TCS members Bryan Pentland and Dave Ramsey each sent me information about their East German O-gauge clockwork train sets from an unknown manufacturer. I identified them as Weimar trains, and my subsequent publications in TCS News [2 , 3 ] resulted in contacts with German collectors that have enabled me to compile this more systematic account of Weimar ’s S-scale trains.

VEB Metallspielwaren Weimar, based in the Thuringian town Weimar , was an important East German manufacturer of toy cars, lorries, and clockwork trains. Andreas Reißmann [4 ], the proprietor of the newly established DDR-Spielzeugmuseum ( GDR Toy Museum ) in Langenwetzendorf near Greiz (www.spielzeugmuseum.lunalight.de), provided an account of the firm’s history as well as its different logos. Its predecessor “Metallwaren Galvanik Weimar” had started production in the 1950s, and in 1958 issued a series of clockwork trains with the box label GHK (G stands for “Galvanik”, HK are probably the initials of the firm’s owner). These first trains were approximately S-scale, but run on O-gauge track. After nationalisation in 1960 the firm became VEB (K) Metallspielwaren Weimar (VEB (K) = district-owned factory, 'Metallspielwaren' = metal toys), often referred to by the acronym MSW. Their new logo was a small electric motor in front of a clockwork key. From 1964 O-gauge trains were phased out in favour of S-gauge. Neither GHK nor MSW labelled their trains, but from 1975 the letters ‘grip’ appeared on some batches of rolling stock. When MSW was renamed “VEB Spielwaren-Mechanik” in 1982, ‘grip’ became the new logo. The absence of an identifiable trademark was possibly a concession to exports across the Iron Curtain.

Early S-scale went O-gauge

When Bryan Pentland and Dave Ramsey asked for my help in identifying their boxed train sets, with the help of some German collectors we established that they were Metallwaren Galvanik Weimar’s early O-gauge trains.

Weimar seems to have offered their O-gauge trains only as boxed sets. The box lids were decorated with attractive pictures showing different train configurations and scenery with typical Erzgebirge ( Ore Mountains ) wooden buildings. Some of the boxes are still labelled with the logo ‘GHK’, identifying the manufacturer as “Metallwaren Galvanik Weimar”.

The sets came with two different clockwork 0-4-0 steam locomotives and tender:

-          The most common one was of sheet metal construction, and its cab bore the transfers ‘Deutsche Reichsbahn BR 64 002’ and ‘Pt 35.385’. The boiler had one dome and three embossed steam pipes, handrails and large smoke deflectors. The locomotive had red plastic wheels, and the piston rods, simple pieces of sheet metal, were connected to the rear driving wheels that were fitted with rubber traction tires. The 4-wheel tenders had embossed rivets and were lettered “DR” (acronym of the Deutsche Reichsbahn). A row of 3 round holes at the red base was their most distinguishing feature.

-          A second, much harder to find, locomotive was modelled after the popular FD-50 “Borsig” streamliner and came with a Bakelite shell that resembles that of the larger Zeuke 2-6-2 and 4-6-0’s; therefore it is occasionally mistaken for Zeuke. The locomotive looks somewhat peculiar because the typical Weimar tinplate tender does not fit its Bakelite streamline design. However Andreas Reißmann ( GDR Toy Museum ) and www.DDRtete.de [5 ] confirmed its authenticity.

Weimar offered the above locomotives with four different train configurations:

-          An articulated pair of second-class double-decker bogie coaches with corridor connection, enamelled in aquamarine, green or red. They had transfers “DR” and “Nichtraucher” (non-smoker). There was even a deluxe version in the correct DR livery – dark green with white lines.

-          A pair of simple bogie coaches enamelled in a two-tone livery of red, green or blue with ivory above the sill level, decorated with the “Flügelrad” (winged wheel) symbol of the DR and transfers “Nichtraucher”. The less common blue-ivory version is shown on one of the box lid pictures.

-          A pair of 4-wheel open platform passenger coaches enamelled in red or green with yellow window frames, decorated with transfers “Nichtraucher”.

-          A pair of simple 4-wheel tipper wagons.

O-gauge track included with the boxed sets was either realistic looking track sections on a bed of cardboard with embossed colour-printed sleepers and ballast, or conventional tinplate track complete with a Y-switch and a buffer stop as shown in one of the box lid pictures.

However in relation to the track, all the locomotives and coaches appear significantly smaller than O-scale, almost S-scale, not unlike Hornby M-Series, Hachette, Brimtoy or Mettoy trains. Train collector Hans-Peter Waak of Dresden , Germany , tried to explain the incongruity of scale and gauge in Weimar ’s early trains: “Originally intended for S-scale, they were sold after having been re-gauged to run on O-gauge track. Perhaps poor initial sales of the new S-gauge induced Weimar to re-gauge them to the more popular O-gauge. The gauge can be easily altered to S by pushing together the plastic wheels.” The width of the clockwork mechanism was indeed narrow enough for S-gauge (22.5mm), and the photos of the “Borsig” show the mechanism that Weimar used for both gauges S and O.

Occasionally these trains are mistaken for products of the more prominent East-German O-gauge manufacturers VEB Metallwarenfabrik Stadtilm or Zeuke & Wegwerth KG. Although Weimar’s clockwork locomotives do not resemble anything made by Stadtilm (who never ventured into the field of clockwork), it is interesting to note that the transfers on the cab of Weimar’s BR64 are identical to those previously used by Stadtilm on its 2-6-2 tank locomotive before their O-gauge production was sold to Zeuke in 1955. It seems that Metallwaren Galvanik Weimar made good use of leftover transfers. While Weimar ’s double-decker coaches bear some resemblance to those made by Stadtilm in both O and S-gauges, closer examination reveals distinctive differences in the arrangement and proportions of the windows. Furthermore Stadtilm’s S-gauge sets always consisted of three articulated double-decker coaches that unlike Weimar ’s two-coach sets were fitted with buffers, axle box castings and automatic couplers. Weimar ’s simple asymmetric couplings consisted of a hook and fixed bracket.

Although this research resulted in Weimar being added to the list of East German O-gauge manufacturers, their excursion into the larger gauge was only brief and ended after 1964 with the transition to S-gauge. Without any commitment to full O-scale these “S-scale on O-gauge” trains never became as popular as the Zeuke and Liebmann/Stadtilm electric model train systems.

More than 30 years of S-gauge clockwork railways

A detailed account of Weimar ’s entire range in S (scale 1:64, gauge 22.5mm) is given in an article by Thomas Kuhlendahl, published in the July/August 2001 issue of the now defunct German magazine “Spielzeug Antik-Revue” [6 ]. Andreas Reißmann ( GDR Toy Museum ), and TCS member John Forman sent me additional information and photos. Kuhlendahl started with the three earliest S-gauge tinplate clockwork locomotives: a simple 0-4-0 steam locomotive BR 38 with tender; the BR64 002 that was almost identical to the O-gauge version; and a steeple-cab V60. The red wheels and the use of a ‘leftover’ transfer on the V60 suggest Metallwaren Galvanic Weimar as manufacturer of these early locomotives. Four-wheel passenger coaches in red and green, plus low and high-sided open wagons were offered as rolling stock, all with asymmetric hook-bracket couplings. The track was mounted on a bed of cardboard sleepers.

After 1960 the successor VEB Metallspielwaren Weimar (MSW) continued producing S-gauge trains, but Kuhlendahl clearly distinguishes them from those made by VEB Metallwarenfabrik Stadtilm (formerly Liebmann), who had started its S-gauge production in 1956: Weimar produced only clockwork locomotives with grey plastic wheels. Weimar ’s rolling stock was made of heavier gauge tinplate, with more robust enamel finish or detailed lithography. It had loosely fitted red wheels and simple asymmetric couplings, consisting of hooks on one end and wide fixed brackets on the other end of their vehicles. Stadtilm specialized in 2-rail DC electric trains that were fitted with buffers and automatic couplings. Rolling stock was decorated with transfers, and detailed casts were used for springs and axle boxes. Furthermore, Stadtilm always labelled their rolling stock.

However, Kuhlendahl does mention some connections between the two firms. When Weimar introduced the new clockwork 0-4-0 tank engine BR80, it used the same detailed plastic shell that Stadtilm had used for their electric model.

The 1960s saw profound changes in East German S-gauge production. In 1964 Stadtilm started phasing out their S-gauge electric trains, and Weimar became the sole manufacturer of S-gauge. Andreas Reißmann ( GDR Toy Museum ) points out that this coincided with Weimar phasing out their series of O-gauge trains. As Kuhlendahl mentions in another article “Gauge S Toy trains from Stadtilm” [7 ], Weimar inherited some Stadtilm tools and technologies, but nevertheless kept their clockwork mechanisms. Weimar also adopted the Stadtilm track on cardboard sleepers, but changed from round-headed to rectangular rails that were mounted with four instead of three tabs. A denser grade of cardboard with an increased number of sleepers was used.

Weimar ’s simple non-reversing clockwork mechanisms were fairly powerful and were well regulated by a governor. The stop-lever was located at the left between the wheels. The distinguishing feature was the lack of a ratchet or ‘click-plate’ in the wind-up mechanism. Instead its function was performed by a ‘loose’ gear wheel with elongated bearings which allowed it to disengage from the spring wheel during winding.

Weimar ’s late 1960s S-gauge sets consisted of the BR80 steam tank loco with two lithographed 4-wheel tinplate passenger or goods wagons. The new type of passenger coaches, quite realistic models of the DR ‘Reko’ series of reconstructed pre-war 4- and 6-wheel stock with corridor connections, was lithographed in the two-tone liveries of some German secondary railways: green, red or blue with ivory above the sill level.

After 1970 a model of the Czech Diesel shunting locomotive T334 started to replace the BR80, thus reflecting DR’s increasing use of diesel. The T334 had a realistically detailed plastic shell coloured in the prototypical red or blue, with a white cab that even had glazed windows. The re-designed rolling stock gained improved couplings similar to the hook couplings that Zeuke had used for their battery trains. The passenger coaches were now lithographed in red or green with white lines.

The 1970s saw the launch of the container system “Transit” which represented the novel RoRo integrated container transport system in S-gauge clockwork. In his articles “One Man and His Trains” [8 ] John Forman gave a detailed account of the entire “Transit” system. According to a schematic illustration on the box this included six different sets, numbered consecutively from 2118 to 2123:

-          Transit 1: Articulated lorry, forklift truck, flatbed trailer, 3 containers and 1 tanker,

-          Transit 2: Articulated lorry loaded with 2 containers,

-          Transit 3: Diesel locomotive T334 and 2 platform wagons with containers,

-          Transit 4: Same as Transit 3, with the addition of an empty articulated lorry,

-          Transit 5: Diesel locomotive T334 and 2 platform wagons with tankers,

-          Transit 6: Diesel locomotive T334 and 2 platform wagons with open containers for bulk material.

The “Transit” system was quite sophisticated. The lithographed metal containers came in silver, white, red and blue, and their plastic tops could be removed for loading. The tankers could be filled through working screw caps and were available in yellow, labelled “Minol” or “Shell”, and in blue lettered “Standard” or “Transit”. The forklift truck allowed the transfer of the containers between road and rail.

I remember that all these trains were only available in boxed sets, but unfortunately most of them did not include any straight rail sections, and points were completely unavailable. Anyone desiring a more interesting layout had to revert to old Stadtilm S-gauge track.

During the 1980s the series of S-gauge trains was continued with a series of nostalgic tram sets “Trambino”. The clockwork trams and trailers had tinprinted bodies with plastic roofs. The trams were available in three different liveries with line numbers 1 to 3, and the sides were labelled ‘grip’. The numbers on the boxes (2124 to 2126) continued the numbering system of the “Transit” series. Kuhlendahl [ 6 ] shows pictures of set 2126 with tram No. 2. The figure of the driver standing on the open platform has often been lost, as has the pantograph. The colourful lithography included a charming depiction of passengers, including one reading the newspaper and another holding a birdcage, together with moustachioed conductors.

In the 1980s another East-German toy manufacturer, VEB Anker-Mechanik Eisfeld, entered the field of S-gauge with their “Ankerbahn”, offering several nostalgic clockwork steam train sets in mixed tinplate-plastic construction on plastic rails. The box numbers start with 2127, and the tinprinted sides of the passenger coaches bear close resemblance to those of the “Trambino” trams. This suggests a close connection between Eisfeld and Weimar .

VEB Spielwaren-Mechanik Weimar continued producing S-gauge trains until the entire landscape of East German manufacturing was changed forever by the fall of the Berlin Wall. According to the GDR Toy Museum the firm was still in existence in 1991, but nothing more is known about its fate.

The short life of German S-gauge

Despite the efforts of Stadtilm and Weimar in the East, and Karl Bub of Nuremberg in the West, S-gauge never gained the popularity in Germany that it enjoyed in the United States . Karl Bub only produced their 2-rail electric S-gauge system (18V AC, later 12V DC) from 1948 to 1959 [9 ]. The production run of Stadtilm’s S-gauge electric trains (2-rail 4.5V and 12V DC) was even shorter (1956-64). Weimar initially kept their options open in the new field by offering their early S-scale trains for O-gauge track, yet eventually outlived all the other German manufacturers of S-gauge and stayed in production for more than 30 years. Although intended to be no more than toys, these clockwork trains were remarkable for being good representations of their prototypes. Over time a whole S-gauge system emerged that is now highly collectable.

References

1.       “Remembrance of Things Past – O-gauge Trains Made in East(ern) Germany” by Dirk Hertel (TCS News 2002, No 119, pages 26-27, No 120, pages 14-16, and No 121, pages 10-13)

2.       “Remembrance of Things Past, Part Two – S-scale Trains Made in Weimar” by Dirk Hertel (TCS News 2005, No 131, pages 19-23)

3.       “Odds and Ends – Old and New East German Trains” by Dirk Hertel (TCS News 2005, No 132, pages 16-17)

4.       Andreas Reißmann, DDR-Spielzeugmuseum (GDR Toy Museum), www.spielzeugmuseum.lunalight.de.

5.       www.DDRtete.de - Toys and Trains Made in GDR.

6.       “Spur S aus Weimar – Spielbahn aus Blech, Kunststoff und Pappe” (Gauge S from Weimar – Toy trains of Tinplate, Plastic and Cardboard) by Thomas Kuhlendahl (Spielzeug Antik-Revue - July/August 2001, pages 8-11).

7.       “Die Spur S Spielzeugeisenbahn aus Stadtilm” (Gauge S Toy trains from Stadtilm) by Thomas Kuhlendahl and Jan Schwanke (Spielzeug Antik-Revue - February/March 2001, pages 12-15).

8.       “One Man and His Trains” by John Forman (TCS News 2005, No 131, page 24 and No 132, page 11).

9.       “Das kurze Leben der Bub-Spur S” (The Short Life of Bub Gauge S), by Peter Tell (Spielzeug Antik-Revue - June 2001, pages 52-54).

A link to the previous article (gauge O) in this series is here  

‘Any make, Any gauge, Any age’

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